Sorry, Wrong Number!
by pottermum
Summary: Dialling one digit incorrectly changed Harry Potter's life forever, because sometimes mistakes can lead to bigger and better things. This is one of them. Muggle AU
1. Chapter 1

Harry Potter mentally went over in his head exactly what he wanted to say, for the tenth time that morning then, with a deep breath, rang her number on his mobile phone. He then held the phone to his ear to wait for her to answer.

She answered after three rings. "Hello?"

"Hey, it's me. Listen, I've been doing a lot of thinking about our last conversation and – "

"But – "

"No, look, I really need to say this. I really think it's too soon for us to be thinking about moving in together, I mean, it's been what, two months, three? I didn't actually realise we were even being exclusive, I don't recall we ever had that conversation and – "

"Listen, I think –"

"No, Cho, I'm sorry, but my mind is made up. I think I need to concentrate on my career right now so...we need to break up."

He took another breath and braced himself for her tears and an anguished response. Cho was nothing if not over dramatic.

"Are you done?" Her tone was amused, not anguished.

"Er, yeah? Oh, wait! I'd really like us to still stay friends," he remembered.

She snorted, an act that surprised him. "So, er, you're not upset?" he clarified.

"No," she replied, " but if I were this Cho, I'd be pretty pissed at you. Breaking up with me over the phone? That's low, even if it was just three months into the relationship."

"Wait, who is this?" he asked. "I thought I rang Cho's number."

"No, you rang mine," she corrected.

"I'm so sorry," he apologised.

"So am I, for this Cho bird. But you did cover all the relevant points in the Google breakup guide, I'll give you points for that," she chuckled.

"How did you – hey, how did you know I Googled?" he asked, suspiciously. He looked around his loungeroom, as if expecting a random female to suddenly appear and say _"Gotcha!_"

"My ex boyfriend gave me almost the exact same speech two years ago...and the next day I caught him snogging one of my so called friends," she recalled, still miffed.

"Hey, I'm not like that," protested Harry. "She was just getting too serious too soon. I've only known her for maybe three months and we've had, like maybe, eight dates...and she wanted to move in with me."

"Well, when you put it like that..." she began.

"Exactly," he interrrupted.

"Clearly the poor girl was getting mixed signals from you," she began.

"I don't think so," he replied indignantly.

"Did she meet your parents?" she asked.

"Ye-es, but only because we were on our way out and bumped into them," explained Harry.

"Where exactly did you bump into your parents?" she asked.

He flushed. "Outside my flat, in the hall."

"Did she ever sleep over at yours, or you at hers?" she asked.

"Once," he admitted, "but we were drunk at the time."

"Lovely," she said dryly.

"Hey," he huffed.

"Did you exchange keys?" she asked.

"No! She asked for one, but I kept putting her off. What, I like my space," he defended, at her amused grunt. She was starting to piss him off.

"Oh, sweety, you really don't know how deep in with this Cho you are, do you? The very least you owe her is to break up with her face to face," she said, in a no nonsense tone.

"Do I have to?" he whined. "She's a crier."

"Do it somewhere in public, then," she suggested.

"Won't make a difference," he said, almost to himself.

"Well, good luck then," she said, somewhat dismissively. "Have a nice life."

"Wait," he cried, before she could hang up. "What's _your _name?" he asked.

She laughed. "Sorry, wrong number."

And she disconnected the call.


	2. Chapter 2

The break up went exactly as Harry had thought it would. Cho had expected dinner out at the pub where they met, but he had decided to break it off with her as soon as he saw her. There was no point in dragging it out, after all.

"I thought I'd hear from you last night," she began, pouting prettily.

Harry remembered the phone call he _had _had last night. "Er, yeah, sorry, been busy at work," he replied. He was a low level architect that specialised in designing energy efficient homes.

"So, have you thought any more about what we last talked about?" she asked hopefully. The bar tender chose that moment to place their drinks on the table, and Cho picked hers up and began sipping, all the while looking at him expectantly.

"Why don't we finish our drinks and go for a walk, it's a nice night in London," suggested Harry. "Find somewhere quiet, where we can be alone."

She giggled. "We can go back to my flat, if you like?" she offered. "Marietta, my flat mate, is away for the weekend."

He was tempted, only because it was somewhere private and Cho wouldn't have to worry about making her way home after he broke up with her. But before he could agree, she leaned over and kissed him, tasting of the too-sweet cocktail she had just drank.

"I got some sexy new underwear," she whispered, before sitting back and taking another sip.

He reddened. She was hinting at sex and and was planning to break up with her. This wasn't right. He needed to rip this bandaid off right now.

"Iwannabreakup," he blurted. "itstoofast, toosoon."

Cho stared at him; his rambling unclear. "Pardon?"

He took a breath. "I want to break up. Things are moving too fast. Sorry, but I don't want you to move in with me. I like my space. I'm busy with work."

"I see," she replied. Calmly she picked up her drink and sipped.

He waited. She set her drink down and looked around the pub, turning back to him with glistening eyes. "It's me, isn't it?" she finally asked, in a timid voice.

He decided honesty was the best policy. "Yes. I thought we were just casual dating, nothing serious. Having fun, you know?" He decided not to mention the girl he'd been eyeing off in his local cafe, the one he saw every Thursday morning.

She stared at him, the tears spilling out her eyes and running down her cheeks. "I thought you were different," she sniffed.

"Different from who?" he asked, confused.

"All the other stupid men out there," she gestured loudly. "Scared of a little commitment. I should have known once we'd shagged that –"

"Sssh," hissed Harry, glancing around at those seated near them. The men who had overheard looked sympathetic but the women were throwing him dark looks. He smiled his crooked smile at them, the one his mother told him made him look irresistable.

The women all scowled at him.

" -key back?" asked Cho.

He scrambled to think of what she had just said. "Huh?"

Cho looked at him in annoyance. "I said, I suppose you want your key back?"

"When did you get a key to my flat?" he asked in surprise.

"I had one made," she told him. "Who do you think refilled your fridge when you worked late? Left you casseroles?"

"Er, my mother? The batty old woman who lives two doors down, with all the cats?" guessed Harry.

Cho shot him a dark look. "No, Harry, it wasn't your mother, or Mrs Figg, your neighbour, it was me. Worrying about you, looking after you. I cared for you, Harry. I really cared for you."

Her voice had risen, and Harry felt the weight of every person's stare as she dissolved into tears, which quickly escalated into loud, sobbing, ugly crying.

Harry didn't know what to do. He awkwardly patted her shoulder. "There, there," he said, in a soothing voice.

Her head snapped up. "Oh, fuck off, Harry!" She stood so quickly her chair fell over.

Someone tapped Harry on the shoulder; it was the bartender. "We can't have that sort of behavior in here, mate, you need to take her out of here."

"You can just fuck off too, then," cried Cho, and turned and left.

"Sorry about her," apologised Harry, pulling out his wallet to place a five pound note down.

"You can go too," ordered the bar tender, pocketing the money and quickly clearing the table for new patrons.

"All right, all right," grumbled Harry, heading out. He scanned the area for Cho, finding her trying to hail a taxi. "Cho, wait," he called, hurrying over to her.

She wiped tears away, then hoisted her hand back in the air. "Go away, Harry. TAXI!" she screamed.

"Cho, I don't want things to end this way between us," pleaded Harry.

A taxi pulled up and Cho opened the door. "You should have thought of that before you broke my heart. Please don't be home when I come by tomorrow to collect my things."

"Things? You have things at my flat?" asked Harry. This was news to him.

Cho nodded. "Toothpaste, toothbrush, perfume, deodorant, sanitary pads, a pair of stockings. You know, _things,_" she said.

Harry was taken aback, he had not noticed any of those things in his flat.

"I'll be over between twelve and two," she told him.

He nodded, supposing he could go out for lunch somewhere tomorrow. "Cho, I'd really like us to remain friends."

He hadn't expected the slap, so his head flung to the side from the force of it. His hand flew up to his pained cheek and he looked back to see her slide into the taxi and give him the finger as it pulled away.

He turned to leave, but a burst of applause made him realise he and Cho had had an audience the entire time. He scowled at them, dropped his head down and put his hands in his pockets as he made his way home.

He lay on his bed, grimacing as he adjusted the ice pack over the worst of the bruise on his cheek. He heard his message alert go off and blindly patted around for his phone. He unplugged it and picked it up, squinting at the message as his glasses were on the bedside table.

**How did the break up go?**

He frowned. The number looked familiar but no-one knew he was planning on breaking up with Cho, because no-one had thought it was any sort of serious relationship. _Except Cho,_ he thought viciously. He scrambled for his glasses.

**Who is this? **he typed.

**Your wrong number**

**Oh, hey. **

**Well? **

**It did not go well.**

**Sorry. Was she _that_ devastated to lose you? **

**I meant for me.**

**?**

**She cried. Big, loud ugly crying. In the pub. Happy hour, the place was packed**

**You called it.**

**Then she swore at me because I had no idea she broke into my flat and restocked my fridge. I didn't even know she had a key!**

**That's a bit creepy**

**And she left girly stuff here **

**The horror!**

He got the feeling she was taking the piss and he simply wasn't in the mood.

**She slapped me**

**Ouch**

He took a photo of his bruised cheek and slightly blackened eye, and sent it to her.

**Double ouch** she texted back. **Still, it's over. Time to move on **

**She's coming by tomorrow to get her stuff from mine. She asked me not to be here but I don't know if I want to leave her alone in my flat. I'm pretty mad she hit me**

**Pack up all her stuff and leave it in a bag on your counter. No need for her to stay at yours for more than a minute **

**Good idea.** '**What about my key?**

**Do NOT leave her alone in your flat. If you don't want to be there, ask a mate**

**I didn't want it to end this way**

**Breakups can be hard**

**How did I not see how invested she was?**

**Because you're a guy! ;)**

He chuckled, immediately feeling better.

**You'll know what the signs are in your next relationship, tho **

He felt slightly reassured by this but there was a niggling doubt. He quickly typed and sent.

**I didn't realise I was **_**in**_** a relationship with her, that's the problem. She was nice and all, but I didn't see it going anywhere**

**Have you had relationships in the past? **

**Nothing serious. High school girlfriends**

**Well, hang in there. Ms Right is still out there, somewhere**

**What about you?**

**I don't swing that way**

**Ha ha. I meant, do you have a boyfriend?**

**Too busy**

**Too busy for love?**

**I really love my work and I'm pretty busy on the weekends. I don't know if I have the time to factor in another person who would take up a lot of my time. Does that make sense?**

**Sure, I get it. My career is important too **He was finally starting to get noticed at work, and had just recently gotten his first solo work, and was getting noticed by the higher ups.

He realised there had been no messages between them now for a few minutes. He began to text something random, when a message from her lit up his screen.

**Well, again, goodbye and have a nice life **She'd even included the emoji for hands waving.

He felt a bit cheeky.** Çome on, we're just getting to know each other, don't go. Tell me your name **

**Y**

**Call me curious**

**Fine. What do you want to know, Curious**

**Y are you home alone on a Friday night?**

**Who said I was alone?**

**R u?**

**Yes, but I just spent the afternoon and early evening out with my brother's fiancee, trying on hideous bridesmaid gowns. My feet hurt**

He chuckled. **Don't you girls love shopping?**

**Ha, obviously you know nothing about wedding dress shopping. It's hell for everyone but the bride and the bride's mum**

**When's the wedding? **

**July 31st**

**That's my birthday**

**Well, seeing as I'll be a bit busy that day, happy birthday now, from me**

**Gee thanks. I'll miss you on my birthday ;)**

**Ha ha. You might have a new girlfriend by your birthday**

**I'm not looking for a girlfriend. I told Cho I wasn't ready for a relationship and I meant it. But I could always do with a new friend **

**Well, friend, I have to get up early tomorrow so I guess this is goodnight**

**Why are you getting up early tomorrow, its Saturday?**

**I like to go to the gym, and then I'm catching a train home for a family weekend **

**Sounds fun**

**Ha! Wanna go in my place?**

**Come on, how bad can it be?**

**I'm the only girl and the youngest in a family of seven kids. What do you think?**

**7? Wow!**

**I shouldn't complain, I love them to death. What about you, any sibs?**

Sibs? Harry frowned, then -oh, siblings!** No, spoiled only child here :)**

**Well that explains a lot **

**?**

**You never learnt to share. Your space, your time. No wonder your ex was able to leave stuff at yours**

**Do all girls do that, secretly leave their things at a bloke's?**

**I wouldn't know, I've never done it. My sleepovers have always been planned**

**Lucky you **

There was a couple of minutes of nothing, no texts, and Harry didn't know what to say. She seemed to come to the same conclusion.

**Well, bye again. Enjoy your freedom**

**At least I can get back to watching my fave shows. The finals of Bake Off and Britain's Got Talent are coming up **

**Oh, brill. My money is on Sally for Bake Off**

**No way, Mike has got it for sure**

**Come on, he thinks he's the next Jamie Oliver!**

**Don't we all ;)**

**You like to cook? Any good?**

**Yeah, I like it. I think I'm pretty good. Decent, anyway**

**Well, I love to eat, and I'd love to date a guy that can cook, most girls would. You'll have another girlfriend in no time, trust me, person that you've never met**

Harry thought about that. Cho had been clingy and most times, they'd gone out to places she wanted to go, or seen movies she wanted to see. But because he hadn't been fully invested in the relationship, it hadn't bothered him as much as it probably should have.

**Not looking, not in a hurry**

**And that's when you're likely to meet the Right One**

**Well, I'm not looking but I'm not stupid. Bring her on!**

**So you do want a relationship?**

He thought about the people he knew in good relationships, most notably, his parents. Unlike a lot of his peers, he'd always enjoyed a good relationship with them, always knew they had his best interests at heart, and that he was loved.

But apart from being his parents, James and Lily Potter were a formidable duo. They still had date nights, his dad still brought his mum flowers for no reason other than that it was Tuesday, or whatever. They finished each other's sentences, that is, when they weren't doing the whole_ silent talking _with their eyes. They laughed, they were clearly still in love now as they were at eighteen, nineteen, when they met. And they were brilliant parents.

He wanted that for himself.

**Don't we all? **He decided to play it safe, no need to open up too much to this person that was ostensibly, a stranger. He waited for her reply.

**Not necessarily. Quite a few women I met at university aren't thinking about marriage and kids, they want the corporate life, and the perks that come with it **

What the hell, he'd never meet her.** Not me. I love my work but it's not my be all and end all. Marriage and kids are def what I want for my future. What about u?**

**I love kids, I'm a primary school teacher, and I've grown up in a big close family. Sure my brothers are pains in my *** but I know I can count on them and my parents for anything. We didn't have a lot of $$ growing up, but we kids never noticed because we had each other. Family is everything to me **

Harry felt a huge smile break out on his face, and for some reason, he felt relieved. Maybe because he realised he wasn't the only one to feel that way, that it wasn't old fashioned to be close to your family, as Cho had once told him.

**Me too**

Again, he didn't know what to add after that, but was reluctant to end their conversation. Eventually though, she signed off with a simply **G'night **He replied with the hands waving emoji, re-plugged his phone in to charge and set about making himself a simply dinner of ham and cheese toasties and settled down to watch World Wrestling Entertainment.


	3. Chapter 3

Being without Cho officially made no difference to Harry's life, proving to him breaking up with her was the absolute best decision he'd made. His mates agreed, when he'd caught up with them a few weeks later on a Friday night, for a drink at the pub.

"You're well rid of her, mate," agreed Neville, placing three lagers on the table. Harry and his other mate, Terry, reached for one each.

"I can't believe she slapped you," said Terry.

"I still can't believe she had a key cut for my place, and stashed stuff in the spare bedroom," replied Harry. He'd planned to use it as an office when he first moved in, but usually ended up sketching his ideas on his tablet on the sofa, so the room had become a storage room for all his junk, although it did contain a bed in case a friend needed a place to crash.

"You did the right thing in staying at the flat when she came by to get it all. Who knows what else she would have done if you weren't there?" asked Terry, rhetorically.

Cho had not been pleased to see Harry still at his flat when she arrived, nor the haphazard way he'd packed her things in a simple Tesco bag. He'd apologised again for seemingly given her false hope, hoping for a reciprocal apology for the slap, but none was forthcoming. He'd then politely asked for his key back and she'd flung it at him, before storming over to the counter to grab her belongings. Without taking any care, she swept the bag off the counter and, in the process, knocked his favourite mug and a photo frame containing a photo of his parents and him at his university graduation, to the ground, making them both smash into a hundred pieces.

Cho didn't even hesitate, nor look back at the destruction she'd caused. She did, however, stop at the door to look back at him, staring stupidly at the glass and crockery on the floor.

"You were a shitty boyfriend," she told him snidely.

"Get out, Cho," he told her sharply, focusing on cleaning up the mess she'd made, and hopefully fixing the photo.

The slamming of the door alerted him that she'd gone. _Good riddance_

Neville's burst of laughter brought him back to the present, and the presence of his friends.

"So, now that Harry has his balls back, it's time to get back on the horse. Time to hit the clubs, forget the whole Cho debacle, meet someone else," decided Terry.

Harry and Neville grimaced. "I'm not really the club type," reminded Harry, while Neville nodded in agreement.

"Come on, that great new DJ is playing tomorrow night, Lee Jordan. His music is amazing, there is bound to be plenty of chicks there. Find one to snog, hell, find two, three," suggested Terry, with a wink.

"Sorry Terry, I already made plans to go to my parent's tomorrow, and I'm not coming back till Sunday." After all the Cho drama, he'd thrown himself into his work, hence the great result in selling one of his house plans. The only social life he had were his calls with Ginny, so it was with a sense of relief he'd accepted his parent's suggestion to come home for the weekend. "I'm leaving early in the morning."

"Nev? Come on mate, don't let me down," pleaded Terry.

"You know the weekend is the busiest time at the nursery," complained Neville, making room at the table for the plate of hot chips the waitress laid down on the table.

"Come on, we'll get there by eight and leave by midnight, promise," said Terry, batting his eyelashes at Neville.

Neville threw a chip at him. "I'm up at five Sunday morning, remember."

"Eleven, then. Come on, that chick you liked last time might be there again," encouraged Terry.

"Pfft, what are the chances?" asked Neville. He sighed at Terry's hopeful batting. "Fine, just stop doing that...but I'm only staying till ten."

"Ten forty five."

"Ten thirty," bargained Neville, "and that's my final offer."

Harry's phone beeped it's ring tone, and he pulled it out of his pocket. He expected it to be his parents, confirming his travel plans, but to his delight, it was Ginny.

They'd exchanged names the next time she'd texted, to complain about the judging on Britain's Got Talent. They'd ended up texting back and forth for the next three hours, seguing from television to movie to music and sports. Their tastes were similar in some things, but Harry even enjoyed their differences, for their verbal sparring was exhilerating as each tried to persuade the other that their favourite was the better option.

She'd told him she went to the gym so he wasn't surprised to find she actually played in a friendly football league, and also coached a little kids team most Sunday mornings.

He took a chance and texted her the next night, and the talk turned to families and animals. He'd always considered himself a dog person, and missed the family dog, Godric – named for an ancestor – almost as much as he missed his parents and godfather.

Ginny told him she'd grown up with chickens and cats, but loved all animals, except snakes. One of her brothers had an abject fear of spiders

Harry was quite taken with her stories of her brothers, and couldn't imagine growing up with so many siblings. It sounded fun; swimming in the pond and playing games of football which undoubtedly led to her learning the skills at a young age.

They began to text every night, comparing their days and always finding something to talk about. Then, when he'd sold his first house plan, he'd texted his parents to tell them the good news, and it seemed perfectly reasonable to text Ginny too.

She was ecstatic for him, for they had had long conversations about their differing homes and Harry's dream to create eco friendly homes. Ginny described her home as a country homestead in Devon that looked like a tier cake. Layer, upon layer, upon layer, added as each new child was born.

Harry had grown up in a small county called Godric's Hollow, named after an ancestor on his dad's side of the family. He and his parents lived in a small cottage close to the centre of the town, and he probably knew every single resident there.

His parents had told him they'd planned to move into his grandparent's larger home when they'd had another child, but when Harry's grandparents had been killed in a car accident, the shock had made Lily miscarry, and she'd been advised not to try again.

So the three Potters had stayed in Godric's Hollow, and James had kept his parent's large estate in a good sellable condition, but transferred ownership to Harry.

It was this that gave Harry the impetus to begin designing exactly the kind of home he wanted to live in. The styles of building houses had changed, with the emphasis more on using environmentally friendly products as much as possible.

This had been the moment when he'd changed his idea of being an engineer and instead, went to university to study architecture, and had been fortunate to land a position with a reputable company that specialised in the types of homes he wanted to build.

With the expansive grounds and large manor type home that had belonged to his grandparents to play with, Harry had grand plans for a wonderul home for his future family.

"Hello? Harry, are you listening?"

"Sorry guys, what?"

"You've been staring at your phone for minutes, who is it?" chuckled Neville.

"Erm..." He didn't know why he was reluctant to discuss Ginny with his two best mates. "Just mum, checking what time I'm leaving in the morning," he lied.

Neville and Terry didn't question him; Godric's Hollow was a good four or so hour drive away. "So, how about last week's football results, then," said Terry, and the talk turned to the sport.

Harry snuck another look at the phone, it was merely a _'_**have a great weekend'** text, for he had told her he was returning home to visit his parents. In comparison with Cho who had put on a simpering display when she had met his parents accidentally one awkward morning in the hall, she had not seemed interested at all in his family or life outside the city.

He didn't know why Ginny's simple message meant a lot.

But it did.

He was up earlier than planned the next morning, taking a quick shower. He'd packed a small bag the night before and was keen to get on his way. However, with the earlier start, he decided to stop in at his favourite cafe for a large coffee and a pastry before the drive down.

He was surprised to see a line up waiting for coffees, but supposed it was a busy day for shoppers in the city, so he placed his order and waited, checking his phone and debating whether to text his parents he was leaving a full hour earlier than planned.

He decided to check his Facebook and Instagram pages first.

A soft subtle fragrance invaded his senses, and he looked up, and there she was. A woman he'd taken note of on his regular stop ins on Thursdays, she was usually there ahead of him, and he got to admire her from behind.

It was her hair that grabbed his initial attention. The first time it had been in a sensible ponytail trailing down her back. The copper colour complimented the navy jacket she wore, and he took the time to admire her trim figure.

He'd watched her take her coffee order and say something to the barista that made him smile. She turned to go and he was mesmerised by the smatter of freckles on her face, and how naturally beautiful she was.

The next time he'd seen her, he paid more attention to her. She always seemed to get to the cafe before him on a Thursday, and her figure from behind was as good as he remembered. This time her hair was loose and flowing, the reds, golds and coppers melding into one. His fingers itched to run through it, and as she walked past him, he caught a whiff of her delicious scent.

She lingered in his mind, and he debated about starting a conversation with her. Despite a few casual dates with Cho, he felt no guilt about thinking about another woman. But then he slept with Cho, a drunken decision after a party that he had regretted almost immediately, as it wasn't his nature to sleep with someone purely because he could. The fact that it didn't increase his desire to spend more time with her, but rather keep it casual, bothered him, especially when cafe girl featured more prominently in his dreams than Cho.

But Cho was history, and now, here she was, bright and early on a Saturday morning, in their cafe. He watched as she placed her order, laughing and joking with the barista, an Irishman named Seamus.

She was dressed in active-wear today, and he couldn't help but admire her pert butt. Her glorious hair was curled up into a messy bun, and he saw a cluster of freckles at the base of her neck. He licked his lips nervously.

Seamus handed her two coffees in a take-away carrier and she turned to go. For a millisecond her eyes met his, before looking away, but he could swear that she looked back a second time ever so briefly, before she left the cafe.

"Double shot espresso, am I right?"

Harry turned to the barista. "You have a great memory, but today I'll just take a medium capuccino to take away, thanks."

"You're in early," noted Seamus.

"Heading out of the city for the weekend, wanted to get an early start," replied Harry, paying the cashier after adding a pastry to his order.

Seamus prepared his coffee, popping the lid on. "Made it an extra tall for ye for the drive," he said, "no extra charge."

"Thanks, I appreciate it," said Harry.

"Got to look after me regulars. See you next Thursday," winked Seamus.

Harry left after saluting Seamus with his coffee cup, leaving the cafe in an upbeat mood.

As he set off, he was surprised to see coffee shop girl further up ahead, texting something on her phone, her coffees resting on a low brick wall. Feeling in a _what the hell_ mood, he sped up, determined to at least say hi and maybe strike up a conversation.

Before he could reach her, a car pulled up, tooting it's horn. She looked up and smiled, holding up a finger to indicate one second. She looked back at her phone, wrote something and sent it, then grabbed the coffees, got into the car and it took off, just as Harry got to the spot she was just standing in.

His own phone beeped; an incoming message. He used the same brick wall to put his coffee cup down that she had used, and read the message.

It was from Ginny.** Great weather for driving. Have fun with the fam, talk next week. Drive safe**

He headed back to his car with a warm feeling inside.

He made great time, arriving home just before midday. As he left the car, he heard Godric bark, and his dad popped his head out the front door.

"Harry!" he called in surprise, a look of delight on his face. "You're a lot earlier than we expected."

Harry walked towards his father, who hurried out. The two men hugged as men do, with pats on the back.

"It's good to be home," said Harry. He looked over his dad's shoulder, expecting his mother to be running to welcome him by now. "Where's mum?"

"That's the thing, she's gone to the Devon markets," explained James, ruefully, watching as Harry grabbed his bag out the car, then locked it. " She left awhile ago but I reckon she'll be another hour at least."

"What's she doing there?" asked Harry, as they made their way into the small home he'd grown up in. "Hey, Godric!" The yellow labrador ran to Harry, tongue lolling out the side of his mouth.

Harry knelt to pet his dog. "Hey boy, I miss you," he said softly.

"He misses you too, but Sirius has been taking him for long walks lately," confided James, "he's been missing Marlene."

Sirius Black had been James' best friend cum pseudo brother since secondary school, and Lily had met them both when she'd transferred due to a move with her father's employment. James had liked her instantly but Lily took some convincing to come round. But once she did, she fit seamlessly into James' tight knit group of friends, which included Remus Lupin and Frank Longbottom, Neville's father.

Sirius and Marlene, Lily's best friend, had always verbally sparred but there was always an underlying attraction between them. Marlene left their group for awhile after school, moving to Paris to follow her love of fashion. She returned a couple of years later to manage a boutique, and renewed her friendship with the group. And while James and Lily's time was taken up with baby Harry, Sirius and Marlene finally decided to take a chance on the unresolved sexual tension between them and had been together ever since. Their relationship was still as passionate and fiery as ever.

Marlene was now a buyer for a chain of boutiques, and often travelled. Sometime Sirius accompanied her; the two loved to travel whereas James and Lily were homebodies.

"How's Remus and Tonks? How's Teddy?" asked Harry, tossing his bag on the bed of his old bedroom, and returning to the kitchen.

"They're doing well' Teddy's grown so much. You'll see them later, they're all coming over for dinner," said James. "Now tell me about this house plan you sold."

They spent the next hour catching up on their lives, and the lives of their closest friends. James was just telling Harry about the goings on in their little village when Lily returned.

"Harry, when did you arrive?" asked Lily, arms bulging with bags. A gorgeous bouquet stuck out from one of them.

"Hey Mum," greeted Harry, hugging her after James relieved her of her bags. "I left the city about an hour earlier than I planned, and missed a lot of traffic and made good time."

"James, you should have texted me," scolded Lily. As Harry released her from the hug, she grabbed his face between her hands and eyed him carefully.

"Mum, I'm fine," he laughed, batting her hands away.

"I worry about you, all alone in the city," she told him, as she did every visit home.

"Lily, we helped him choose his flat, he has his friends and he has that Cho girl," reminded James, winking at his son, " and he has a good job that keeps him busy. Right, son?"

"Yeah, although Cho and I aren't seeing each other anymore."

"Oh no, I'm sorry, love," said Lily, in a sympathetic tone.

Harry shrugged. "We just weren't right for each other. Better to end it now."

Lily and James exchanged a look. "So, you're not heartbroken?" asked his dad.

Harry chuckled. "Far from it. Listen, I'm going to take Godric for a walk around town, see who I run into, okay?"

The dog whined his agreement, standing and panting close to Harry's feet.

"All right, but if you run into the new minister's wife, beware. Teddy told her he knew a dog called God, and man, you should have seen her face go red with indignation. I think it's a good thing Teddy is only two. Remus hurriedly apologised and explained, but I swear, she looks at Teddy funny every time she sees him."

Harry laughed. "Our little blasphemer! Okay, and I'll stop in and see Aunt Hilda too." Bathilda Bagshot was the oldest resident in their village, and had known Harry's grandparents _and_ great grandparents. Harry loved to hear her tales of a time long past.

Harry watched on as Remus helped Teddy throw a ball for Godric to chase. Lily, Tonks and Tonk's mother, Andromeda, were inside preparing salads and drinks, while James, Sirius and Harry had congregated around the barbecue. The table was set, with the gorgeous bouquet as the centrepiece.

"So, your dad tells me you and this Cho girl are over," began Sirius.

"Yeah, but it's cool. I'm pretty busy at work right now," admitted Harry.

"You can't let work be your be all and end all, Harry," chided James.

"I'm not," protested Harry. "I go out with Nev and the other guys."

"So there's nobody you're interested in?" asked Sirius.

Harry hesitated, the image of his coffee shop girl coming to mind. There was also his nightly conversations with Ginny that he had come to look forward to.

Sirius chuckled knowingly, patting his shoulder. "That's my boy."

"It's nothing, not really," said Harry.

"James, can you come and grab the last of the meat to cook?" called Lily, and James saluted and left to go inside.

"Tell me more," suggested Sirius.

So Harry began to explain how he'd seen this girl in a cafe he frequented, but had never spoken to.

Sirius, of course, told him to go for it, that life was too short, that this unknown woman would be lucky to date him.

Harry was grateful for the support; it was all he'd known growing up with his parents and Sirius, his biggest cheerleaders.

"You know, she could be a big dull dud," reminded Harry, after promising Sirius he'd somehow get to talk to coffee shop girl. "Looks aren't everything. I'd like someone I can have great talks with, who has similar taste as me."

Sirius nodded. "But something attracted this coffee shop girl to you," he reminded his godson. "You owe it to yourself to at least talk to her. Otherwise she'll always be the one that got away, and believe me, you don't want to look back, years from now, and wonder...what if?"

Harry had to admit Sirius had a point. As great as his talks with Ginny were, neither had made the suggestion to actually meet up.

"I should see her next Thursday," he told Sirius. "I promise I'll talk to her then."

"That's my boy," said Sirius, pleased.

They looked up as James, overloaded with platters of meat, stumbled and dropped three sausages. Godric happily gobbled them up as Teddy giggled and James cursed.

"Don't tell Lily," he pleaded, as Sirius and Harry laughed.

It had been a fun night catching up with Remus, Tonks, Andromeda and Teddy. Dessert had been a delicious treacle tart his mother had gone to Devon to collect, having ordered it from a woman who baked tarts and pies to sell at the markets. The Lupins and Andromeda left early as Teddy was falling asleep, but Sirius had stayed, and Harry and his parents and godfather had sat around talking and laughing until midnight.

He'd joined his parents at the Sunday morning service at the small church that was the heart of their little village. Mindful of his father's advice about the minister's wife, Harry smiled but gave her a wide berth, as he introduced himself to the new minister. He did notice she watched Teddy warily.

He'd planned to leave Godric's Hollow at lunchtime, to give himself plenty of time to return to the city and prepare tea and ensure his laundry was done and cupboards were full for the week ahead.

His parents insisted on taking him out for an early lunch after the service was over, and they drove to nearby Tinworth, to a pub they often frequented. It was while James was placing their orders that Harry's phone beeped with a new text message.

He shot an apologetic look at his mother, who nodded her assent. He removed his phone from his pocket and looked at the screen.

It was a message from Ginny. **'Harry, we won our first game! Best day ever!' **

Lily watched as Harry's face lit up and he madly typed back his congratulations.

"Neville?" she asked, feeling no compunction about prying.

" No, er, another friend." His phone beeped again, and he read -** 'Hope you're having the best time with your family. Talk tonight? Gotta go take the little champs to Mcdonalds to celebrate!**'

**'Def talk tonight'** he texted back, then closed his phone and left it on the table. He then became aware his mum was watching him closely. "What?" he asked, defensively.

"Nothing...must just be a special friend to put that huge smile on your face," she noted.

Harry flushed, checking to see where his father was. He was chatting to a man in a queue, as they were waiting to order. This was his chance to speak to his mother about Ginny.

He quickly explained how he dialled the wrong number, the fiasco that was Cho and how he and Ginny were now texting and calling nightly. How they had so much in common, but also managed to listen and appreciate the differences they had.

"She sounds pretty great," admitted Lily. "What did she text you about today that made you smile like that?"

"She coaches a kids little league football team on Sunday mornings, and they just won their first game She was pretty excited," said Harry.

"And she wanted to share it with you," smiled Lily.

Harry nodded. "But then there's this other girl, I see her at my local cafe and she's really pretty, but I don't know anything else about her. I told Sirius I'd speak to her this week but...I think I really want to meet Ginny in person."

They heard James approach. Lily patted Harry's hand. "Just listen to your heart, Harry. It will always lead you to the right person."

Harry smiled softly. "Thanks Mum."

James sat down, placing drinks in front of Harry and Lily. "So, what did I miss?" he asked.

Harry and Lily shared an amused look. "Nothing Dad, not a thing."


	4. Chapter 4

Ginny's POV

Luna Lovegood had been Ginny's best friend since the age of 9. They lived near each other in Ottery St Catchpole and had seen each other ocassionaly at the village shops. Luna had been home-schooled by her father till an industrial accident killed her mother. Her father had become obsessed in proving it was a cover up, as his wife Pandora had been quite vocal about the animal testing the company used.

Poor Luna had lost her mother, and her father had taken up his wife's cause, even printing a newspaper exposing companies that used unethical ways of testing products before they went on sale.

Nine year old Luna had turned up to the local primary and immediately became the brunt of bulllying. Ginny, herself a target from older boys merely because of her hair colour and small stature, had stood up for the newcomer, and they had been best friends ever since. Ginny even joined Luna in chaining herself to a tree out the front of the school when authorities decided to tear it down; Luna's dad covering the story for his newspaper. The authorities backed down due to public backlash, despite insisting it was a safety hazard, and when the tree fell down the following year after a storm, Luna was delighted, stating the tree had chosen it's own time.

Ginny adored Luna, who always had a quirky way of looking at things. She was the one person Ginny knew she could be totally honest with. Therefore, she had invited Luna to come to her flat to ask her advice.

"I think I'm going to do it," stated Ginny Weasley.

"Hmm?" Her best friend Luna was staring at her phone, but looked up. "Pardon?"

"I'm going to ask Harry if we could meet up this Friday night," repeated Ginny.

"You want to meet the guy who rang you and tried to break up with you?" clarified Luna, proving she had listened. She suddenly realised that didn't make sense, a confused look on her face.

"No, Luna, he simply dialled the wrong number," explained Ginny patiently. "I haven't met Harry before, but he sounds really great. We've been talking nearly every night these last few weeks."

"Hmm? Damn, this phone is definitely broken." Luna banged the phone against the arm of the chair she was sitting in.

Ginny grinned. "If it wasn't before, it definitely is now. Here, give it me. You and technology really don't mix well, Luna."

Luna happily handed over her phone. "I'd really rather write a letter anyway, these phones can be so impersonal."

"But Luna, you use your Instagram page to educate people about all the wrongdoings in the world, and how we can help you right those wrongs. And how else can I stay in touch with you when you're off travelling in remote countries?" reasoned Ginny, frowning as she played with Luna's phone.

That's true. I'm up to seventy three followers now," beamed Luna, " and I do look forward to your text messages."

"Are you in town long?" Ginny stretched her legs out on her comfy sofa, shifting as she continued to try and fix Luna's phone. She sipped her margarita and sighed. "Sorry, Luna, I think your phone needs professional help."

"That's okay. I'll take it to Creevy's, that place on the corner. See if they can fix it, or I'll simply get a new one. I'm waiting on a phone call to see when we're leaving for China." Luna slurped her drink.

"You're lucky you get to travel so much while living your passion of helping animals, Luna," said Ginny.

"I know. It can get lonely, though." She took the phone back from Ginny and looked at it. "I do hope this Harry turns out to be one of the good ones. You haven't had a boyfriend in ages."

Ginny flushed. "I'm not necessarily hoping Harry will become my boyfriend...but he seems a decent guy, someone I'd like to hang out with, or go to the movies with. We can talk for hours about anything."

"That does sounds nice, and I really believe men and women can just be friends."

"Of course they can," agreed Ginny.

"What if this Harry turns out to be hot?" asked Luna, " would you sleep with him? I do miss sex, don't you?"

Ginny shrugged. "If we were mutually attracted to each other, sure, after we spent more time getting to know each other. I mean, I already know he's intelligent and caring. I like him, Luna, I really do."

"Then why have you waited till now to want to meet him?" asked Luna, holding up her phone to take a selfie. She then checked out her image, frowning.

"I don't know, I guess our talks have been going so great, I didn't want to meet him and be disappointed if it had all just been a lie. Great guys are hard to find these days." Briefly the image of the dark haired guy from her cafe came to mind, but she brushed it away.

"Have you considered dating women?" asked Luna curiously.

"No!" giggled Ginny, then stopped. "Why, have you?"

Luna shrugged carelessly. "I don't want to limit my possibilities. If great guys are hard to find, then it stands to reason that I should be able to find a great woman."

"Luna, you'd really consider dating a woman? I had no idea you were...flexible?"

"Oh yes, well, why not?"

"Why not, indeed," muttered Ginny. She held up her glass. "Another margarita, Luna?"

"Ooh, yes please."

Harry hurried to the coffee shop, managing to get there just before they closed. To his relief, the usual barista, Seamus, was wiping down the machine.

"Machine's down for the night, mate," he said, when he saw Harry approach.

"That's okay, I didn't come in for a coffee. I was wondering if you could do me a favour," said Harry. He had been wondering when and how he could speak to coffee shop girl, for he had an early morning meeting on Thursday. Sirius had come up with a great idea, when he'd called Harry Tuesday night to see how things were progressing.

"Well now, I don't know how I can help you?" asked Seamus, doubtfully.

"Do you recall an attractive woman who comes in here early mornings? I know she's usually here on Thursdays. Shorter than me, usually smartly dressed, gorgeous copper coloured hair, longish, and a cute smattering of freckles on her face," finished Harry.

Seamus smirked. "Sounds like you took a bit of notice of this lass."

Harry nodded, then remembered - "Oh, and she was here last Saturday, dressed in sports clothing. She was just ahead of me, actually."

"Aye, I know the one. Nice lookin' lass. Caramel latte, that one, got a bit of a sweet tooth. Sweets for the sweet, I tol' her," said Seamus.

"Yes, that's her," exclaimed Harry, tampering down an uneasy feeling in his chest at Seamus' attempt at flirting with her.

" 'ow can I help you with her?" asked Seamus.

"I planned to speak to her this Thursday, but I now have an early morning meeting. I was wondering if you could give her my phone number?" asked Harry.

Seamus looked thoughtful. "I dunno...suppose it couldn't hurt."

Harry nodded eagerly, handing over a ten pound note and a note. "This is to pay for her coffee and you can keep the change for your troubles. I promise you, I'm not some creep, or stalker or anything. I'd just like to meet her for a drink or dinner, whatever she wants. And this way, if she's not interested, she doesn't need to do anything. It's all on her."

Seamus pocketed the cash, checked the note which merely had Harry's name and mobile number on it, and nodded.

"She should be in tomorrow morning, I'll make sure she gets it," promised Seamus.

Harry's face broke out in a wide smile. "Thanks, Seamus."

"Never let it be said that Seamus Finnegan stood in the way of love," quipped Seamus.

Harry saluted him. "You're a champion, Seamus, thanks. Good night."

"G'night, mate," waved Seamus.

Ginny hurried to her coffee shop, running later than she would have liked. She had a training session the night before with her football team that had run late, and then the team went out for a few drinks. She and Harry hadn't talked last night, as he was preparing for a big meeting and she had missed their nightly talk.

She had chickened out of asking him on Monday night, so tonight she was going to do it. "Suck it up, Ginny, just ask him. Worst case scenario, he says thanks, but no thanks," she told herself, as she walked up to order her coffee.

"They say talking to yourself is the first sign of insanity," teased Seamus. "Caramel latte?"

"Yes please, just a small, to takeaway," said Ginny, blushing at being caught out talking to herself. Maybe she was crazy to think of meeting Harry. They had a good thing going, texting all the time. He'd never asked to meet, so why shake things up? She continued to mentally tally a list of all the reasons for her and Harry to meet or to keep the status quo.

"Here you go, made it a medium for ya," said Seamus, passing it to her.

Ginny smiled gratefully as she took a sip. "Bless you," she said, as she handed him some money.

But Seamus shook his head. "Already been paid for," he grinned. He really couldn't wait to see how this all played out.

Ginny was confused. "I don't understand."

"See, there's this bloke, seems like a decent guy. He thinks you're a bit of all right, he does. He usually sees you on a Thursday, and was planning on talkin' to ya, but he won't be here this week. So he comes to me and asks me to pass on this note to ya, and he's paid for your coffee," explained Seamus.

"Oh my." Ginny opened the note and read it. "That's it, just his number? Wait, this looks familiar."

"Just his name and number," agreed Seamus. "He said this way, it's up to you if you want to take it further."

Ginny unfolded the note properly. "Harry. Harry? Wait, this is _Harry's_ number."

"Er, yes, that's his name, Harry." Now Seamus was confused.

"No, you don't understand, this is Harry's number...my Harry! I mean, he's not my Harry, not like that, but, oh, I'm bollocksing this up."

"You mean you already know this Harry?" asked Seamus, bemused.

"No...well, kind of. He rang my mobile by mistake a few weeks ago, and we've been talking ever since, but we've never met. What does he look like?" she asked eagerly.

"Well, he said he was here last Saturday when you were here. Taller than you, a mop of black hair. Like I said, seems like a nice bloke."

"Was he the one in the back, with the black messy hair?" asked Ginny, daring to hope.

Seamus nodded, relieved. "That's the one."

"_That's _Harry?" squeaked Ginny. He was a hottie! Oh my, she really needed to talk to Luna about this latest development.

"All right then, lass?" asked Seamus. "Have I done the right thing?"

She nodded, beaming. "Seamus, I could kiss you."

"Save it for your Harry," winked Seamus, making her giggle. "Have a great day."

"I definitely will now," said Ginny. Suddenly her day looked a lot brighter, till she glanced at her watch. "Damnit, now I'm late."

But nothing could take away the thrill that Harry, her Harry, wanted to meet her, even if he didn't know she was the one he'd been talking to every night. But she knew, and she wondered how she could play this out.

She needed to talk to Luna!

" Luna, what am I going to do?" asked Ginny, pacing around her flat.

"About what?" asked Luna, immersed in setting up her new phone.

"About Harry! The guy I've been talking about for the last fifteen minutes," sighed Ginny dramatically.

Luna shrugged. "Text him. He wants to meet you, you want to meet him."

Ginny flopped onto the sofa. "But that's not the point. He doesn't know it's me, but I know it's him. Do I tell him straight away?"

"Why wouldn't you?" asked Luna.

"Well, I thought I could have a bit of fun with it, you know. Harry has a great sense of humour, and he often talks about his dad and godfather pranking each other. This would be a kind of prank on him," suggested Ginny.

"Are you sure you want to do that before you've even met him?" asked Luna, doubtfully.

Ginny nodded. "Trust me, once Harry realises, he'll see the funny side."

"You know him better than I do," shrugged Luna. " So text him, already. Damn, how have I lost all my contacts?" She shook her head and focused on her phone.

"Right. I will text him. I'm going to do it. I am. Plans need to be put into motion," said Ginny, determinedly.

Luna looked up at Ginny, then at Ginny' phone before looking back at Ginny, her eyebrow arched in query.

"You mean now?" asked Ginny, starting to sweat.

Luna nodded. "No time like the present. Besides, I'm leaving Monday, and I want to see how this goes."

"Monday – already? What if this doesn't work out? I'm going to need my bestie to talk to, to get drunk with."

"We can facetime, I have that on my new phone," said Luna, cheerily, then frowned. "I need to set it up first." She hunched over her phone yet again.

Ginny took a deep breath and opened the message feature on her phone. She began to text:-

**Hey Harry, I -**

A sudden thought occurred to her, and she stopped typing. "What am I doing? I can't text from _my_ phone, he knows my number, he might even have it saved in his contacts list. Luna, I'm going to need to use your new phone please," said Ginny.

"Ooh, my first text on my new phone, and it could be the one that brings you together with the love of your life," exclaimed Luna, handing her phone over.

Ginny flushed. "Let's not get ahead of ourselves. Okay, here goes."

Harry was eating his lunch at his desk, working on a new set of house plans he'd been given for the new clients he was meeting in the morning. They had quite specific eco friendly requests, and Harry was genuinely excited to be working on this project. He worked on his computer, trying different ideas for the floor plan.

His phone buzzed, for he'd had it on silent for a staff meeting. He didn't recognise the number, so frowned as he opened the message app. When he started to read, he sat up abruptly, almost spilling his coke down the front of his shirt.

It was her; coffee house girl.

**Hi Harry. Seamus at Java Joe's gave me your note. You've definitely intrigued me, why don't we meet at the coffee shop on Saturday morning, and see how we go. Let me know xx PS Thanks for paying for my coffee :)**

He read it once, twice, three times before he reacted. Then he yelled "Yes!" and gave a fist pump.

Mandy, the receptionist, poked her head into his office. "Did you say something, Harry?"

He shook his head, re-reading her message again. "Everything is great, just great, thanks Mandy."

"Congratulations again on getting the Zabini's as a client. They are big money."

"They have some great ideas I can't wait to incorporate into their new house," enthused Harry.

"House? Sounds more like a country manor to me. Oh well, as long as everything is okay, I best be getting back to my desk." Mandy reluctantly left, wondering how in the hell she could get Harry's attention. She sighed; he was probably gay.

He looked back at the message; Mandy already forgotten. "Everything is brilliant," he said to himself.

Before he could over think things, he quickly replied to her text.** Saturday sounds good. 10Am?**

Ginny almost jumped ten feet in the air when the phone in her hand beeped for an incoming text message. "You have Yoda as your alert tone, saying _'Do or do not, there is no try?_" she asked Luna.

"It's a good motto in life," nodded Luna.

"Oh my god, it's him!" cried Ginny. She read the short message, her face shining as she looked at Luna. " He's agreed to meet Saturday at the coffee shop, 10 o'clock. Yes!" She fist pumped and grabbing Luna's hands, dragging her up and dancing her around like they had done as little girls, making Luna giggle.

Ginny then calmed. "Okay, now to call him on _my_ phone, and suggest we meet." She handed Luna her new phone back.

Luna frowned. "I thought he was already meeting you?" She returned to the sofa and continued to browse the app store.

"No, he's meeting unknown me, girl from the coffee shop. Now I'm going to suggest he meets me, Ginny."

"I don't get it," said Luna, screwing up her nose.

"Don't you see, Harry will think he's meeting two girls, but when he meets me at the coffee shop, I'll say, surprise, its me, Ginny." Ginny crossed her arms, feeling chuffed with herself.

"Well, if you're sure," said Luna, doubtfully.

"I am," assured Ginny.

"Okay. Now, what's my email?" asked Luna.

"You don't know your own email?" asked Ginny.

"Well, I never message myself, do I?" Luna asked rhetorically. "I only just got to know my old phone number and now I have a new one!"

"You have a new number? Luna, you didn't say," said an exasperated Ginny.

"I just thought new phone, new number," smiled Luna.

"Well, let me put your new number in my phone, cos I am definitely going to be messaging you about Harry," chuckled Ginny, giddily.

"Yes, you'll need me to be bridesmaid," teased Luna.

"Luna!" laughed Ginny.

She waited till she was home and had dinner before texting Harry at their usual time.

**Hey, ready for the big meeting tomorrow?**

"**I think so. They have some really interesting ideas they want me to incorporate into their new home. Very excited. **

**Well done! Your bosses must be impressed with u**

**Yes, the general consensus around the office is that I'm brilliant! ;) **

**LOL**

**Sorry haven' been able to talk much this week. **

**It's ok. Actually I was wondering if you'd want to meet up sometime**

Ginny held her breath and crossed her fingers. Please, please, please, please. She knew it was silly, she'd be meeting Harry on Saturday anyway, but somehow it had become important that he wanted to meet his text buddy Ginny, as well as unknown coffee shop girl.

After what seemed forever but was probably only a minute, her alert tone beeped. Heart in mouth, she read his reply.

**Sure, was going to suggest it myself **

Ginny beamed, it was all going to plan. Now to up the ante. She quickly texted.

**I know this great cafe near my school; Java Joe's. We could meet for coffee, see how it goes? Saturday?**

**Sorry, busy Saturday. Sunday, maybe?**

Ginny chuckled to herself, of course he was busy Saturday morning.

**Sorry, I coach the kids on Sun morning. You busy all day Sat? I have a date Sat morning, but should be free in the afternoon or night, unless things go really well ;0**

"**You have a date? You never said anything? **For some reason this didn't sit well with Harry.

**Someone I just met. Hopeful! **So very, very hopeful

**I should be free Sat night. Want to get a meal, we can talk about the new Blade sequel and how your date went. I have a date Sat morning myself**

**That girl you mentioned from the coffee shop?**

**Yeah. **

**Why don't we meet at that coffee shop and go from there? You can tell me all about her**

**Sounds good. **It didn't really, it felt...strange, to be talking to Ginny about this other girl, when he had wondered if he and Ginny...well...her reply stopped him dwelling too much on what if?

**Can't wait to finally meet you, Harry**

**Same. Don't know why we haven't done this sooner**

**Me either. Talk tomorrow?**

**Definitely**

**Bye Harry**

**Bye Ginny**

They both looked at their phones, re-reading the conversation, and took a deep breath, wondering what was going to happen now.


	5. Chapter 5

He tried to straighten his hair all the way to the café, even knowing it was a lost cause. Suddenly he was on the street, and the sign was right there. _Java Joe's!_ She was in there, waiting.

For him.

His phone buzzed, and he welcomed the distraction. It was a text from Ginny.

**Good luck for your date**

He could almost determine her tone of optimism. He'd succumbed to his nerves and told her all about coffee shop girl during their Friday night chat, and she seemed surprisingly upbeat about it, shutting down any ideas Harry may have had that anything could happen between the two of them, no matter how good they got along.

She texted again - **Nervous?**

**Hell yeah! Think I may be leaving a trail of sweat.**

**She's just a woman, Harry. Chill.**

Harry shook his head; Ginny just didn't get it. **What if she's THE one?**

**Then you shouldn't keep her waiting.**

He read her last message and nodded, pocketing his phone. He walked closer, chanting softly, "Don't mess this up, don't mess this up."

At the door he stopped to breathe into his palm, then sniffed. Still minty fresh, whew! He pushed the door open and stepped inside.

It was pretty crowded for a Saturday morning, most of the tables at the front were already taken, but she had mentioned she'd be waiting in a booth at the back. He looked at Seamus, busy behind the coffee machine, and damned if the Irishman didn't wink at him, and gesture to the back booth.

She was here.

In his pocket, his phone pinged again, and he fought the urge to take it out, one hundred percent positive it would be Ginny again. He tried to mentally message her. _'It's okay, I've got it from here.' _At least she was being supportive, he supposed.

Taking a deep breath, he bypassed the crowd waiting for their takeaways, and saw her. She was sitting with her back to him, her glorious hair cascading down her back. Taking a deep breath, he quickly slid in opposite her and looked at her.

His heart skipped a beat. She was beautiful.

"Hello."

Ginny smiled nervously at him, dropping her phone. "Hello, Harry." Inwardly she was screaming. He _was_ the hottie! And those eyes...

"Thanks for meeting me," he said, ignoring the beeping of his message tone.

"Thank you," she replied. "You can get that if you want." She indicated his pocket.

"Erm, I'll just check it then turn it off," he told her.

**Hey Harry, I'm just stopping at that cafe to grab a coffee, wanted to make sure its the right one for our meeting tonight. Java Joe's, right?**

Shit, Ginny was coming here...now?

"Sorry, I really need to reply to this," he apologised to her, looking up.

"No problem, I'll quickly check mine too, then we're done with them, okay?" she asked.

Harry nodded in relief.

**Hey, Gin. Yep, Java Joe's.**

He looked up, smiling apologetically again at the woman in front of him. She smiled back, but then her phone beeped.

"Sorry, do you mind?" He shook his head and she took out her phone. Her wallpaper was that of her and a blonde woman; he decided it would make a good conversation starter if needed. She was cute when she read, then replied to, whatever message she had received.

Harry's phone beeped again, but as she was still looking at her phone, she waved him to answer it. "Sorry, go ahead and get yours."

Harry picked his up and read it.

**Hey aren't you here now too? **

Harry gulped. He wasn't mentally ready to meet Ginny yet, not when he was with another woman. He was debating about whether to lie to her and say they had gone elsewhere, when he received another message.

**How's it going? **

He quickly replied, hoping she'd get the hint to stop texting. **Ask me again in an hour**

Ginny's phone pinged again, and she grimaced. "Sorry."

"No problems."

She hunched over her phone, her glorious hair falling over her face. He studied her, liking what he saw. She finished her message and put her phone down, only to have his message alert ring.

"Damn, sorry, I thought I turned it off. One second," he vowed, and she nodded.

Harry looked at his screen, of course it was from Ginny.

**Harry I have a confession to make**

He was intrigued, but no, not now. He quickly replied -

**Can it wait? Kinda busy here. Will call as soon as date is over, promise**

He sent the message but didn't turn the phone off, genuinely intrigued and slightly concerned. He failed to see Ginny read her phone, he was so engrossed in waiting for Ginny's reply.

"No."

Harry looked up. "Pardon? Did you say something?"

"No, it can't wait," she said, a flush breaking out over her cheeks.

"What can't wait?"

"My confession," she said slowly.

"Huh?

She pointedly held up her phone and texted. His own phone beeped seconds later, and she gestured for him to read it.

**Harry, it's me. I'm Ginny.**

He read it twice, quickly, before his brain caught up. He read it once again, then looked at her, then back at the message. His jaw dropped open as it finally sunk in.

"You...her" – he pointed at the phone and she nodded – "you're Ginny? You're _my _Ginny?"

She nodded, unsure if he was pissed at her or pleased. "It was meant to be a joke, you know, for the way we met. Ha ha." Her laughter was pained.

Harry stared at her for seconds, then through his head back and laughed loudly. "You...you're Ginny? This is brilliant," he managed between breathing hard from his laughter.

Ginny visibly sighed in relief. "Oh, thank god. I told Luna you had a great sense of humour and I had this all planned out, but it wasn't as funny actually doing it. All this texting is kind of impolite."

He chuckled, pointing at her wallpaper. "That's Luna, right?" Of course he had heard all about Ginny's best friend, the one with wanderlust and a need to help those that couldn't help themselves. She was just as Ginny described. He then made a point of picking up his phone and turning it off.

Ginny nodded to his question about Luna, and copied him, turning her phone off too. They placed them in the centre of the table and merely looked at each other.

"So we finally get to meet," she declared.

"About time too," he agreed.

"All this time we'd seen each other in this coffee shop," she sighed.

"Yeah...wait, you saw me?" he asked, surprised.

"A couple times, yeah. Like, last Sunday," she told him. "The hottie in the back corner."

He blushed. "Hottie? Hardly."

"Definitely a hottie," she teased him.

"Well, you're more beautiful than I dared to dream," he replied, thrilling to see her blush too. He was mesmerised by the freckles on her face.

They talked and laughed for more than an hour, and could have continued on if Seamus hadn't come over to their booth.

"Hey guys, pleased as I am to see this all going well, you've nursed one cup of coffee for the last hour and a half. I've got other people wantin' a booth," he said.

"Has it been that long already?" Seamus nodded at Ginny's question and waited.

"Seamus, we're sorry. Give us a minute, will you?" asked Harry.

Seamus nodded and walked back behind the counter.

"So, we're booth hogs," she chuckled. "Shall we get another cup?"

"Well, it's nearly lunchtime. How about we get out of here and go to the pub for a meal?" suggested Harry.

"Brilliant! How about 'The Stag and Hound', it's just a block or so over," she suggested.

" I was going to suggest that, they do a really good -"

"Steak and kidney pudding," they finished together.

They smiled at the other, feeling something amazing was happening here, and hoping the other felt the same.

"Shall we?" asked Harry.

Ginny nodded, gathering her bag and slipping out of the booth. Harry grabbed both phones, and handed hers back to her.

They vacated the booth; a relieved waitress rushed to wipe it down for waiting customers. They waved to Seamus, with Harry mouthing _'thanks'_, and left the cafe.

To Harry's thrill, Ginny boldly slipped her arm through his as they headed for the pub, talking non stop, apart from the occasional stop to breathe.

Harry didn't mind, he was content to simply look at her and contribute occasionally, that is when he wasn't laughing at her story. He could barely believe what had just happened, but it was bloody brilliant! It was all so effortlessly easy, as if they had known each other for ages, rather than a mere hour and a half.

They stopped to cross the road at the traffic lights, and Harry looked at the group on the other side of the road, also waiting to cross. He actually did a double take, as the light clicked for them to start walking.

"Mum, Dad...Sirius? What are you doing here?" he cried, with both groups stopping in the middle of the road.

Cars tooted, and Harry gestured for his parents and godfather to return to the side of the road they'd just left. An annoyed driver gave them another toot as he drove past, and Harry was amused as both Sirius and Ginny gave him the finger.

"What are you guys doing here?" he repeated.

"_Sirius_ let us know you were meeting someone today," said his mother, letting him know of her disapproval that she had to find out that way. She smiled apologetically at Ginny.

"We thought we'd come and see how it went," explained James.

"It seems to be going well," teased Sirius, winking at Ginny, who laughed.

"Yes, well,_ it_ is still happening," smiled Harry, through gritted teeth. He pleaded with his eyes for them to go away.

"We're just on our way to lunch, why don't you join us?" asked Ginny.

Harry swivelled his head to stare at her. "Say what?"

"They've come all this way, Harry, they must have left very early this morning," rationalised Ginny.

"We did," agreed Lily.

"They could go to my flat, wait for me there," suggested Harry, hoping one of them would take the hint.

"Oh, then I'd feel bad that I was taking your time away from them," sighed Ginny, biting her bottom lip.

Harry stared at her lip for several seconds, till Sirius sharply nudged him.

"Ow, what the bloody hell, Sirius," he complained, till his godfather gestured at Ginny.

"It's settled, then," decided Ginny, re-linking her arm through Harry's. "We're off to the pub for lunch, the lot of us."

James offered his arm to his wife, and the five set off, making small talk along the way.

It was probably the most fun lunch Harry had ever had. Naturally, James and Sirius delighted in sharing the most embarrassing stories of Harry's life thus far, which Lily tried to counteract with stories of his cuteness and kindness.

Ginny shared stories of her own, of growing up with older brothers, and the fun times they had. Sirius loved the stories of the twins and their many pranks, which led to Ginny mentioning the prank she had pulled on Harry.

"- and he was looking at his phone, then at me, then back at his phone, trying to make sense of it all," chuckled Ginny, " his mouth was gaping so much, he looked like a goldfish."

Sirius laughed; he and Ginny were already thick as thieves. That meant a lot to Harry, for he was close to his godfather.

"He's a charmer, all right," boasted James, slinging an arm around Lily's shoulders. He squeezed, and she squeezed her hand on his knee in reply, their private code of approval of Ginny.

"Learned it all from me," winked Sirius.

"Marlene might have a thing or two to say about that," quipped Lily. Harry quickly filled Ginny in on Sirius and Marlene's fiery relationship.

After a couple of hours, and during a lull in their conversation, Ginny said, "I should probably go, let you have some time together as a family."

"No, come on, stay," pleaded James and Sirius. She looked to Harry, who nodded earnestly.

"Please stay, dear, we'll need to be heading home soon anyway," said Lily, and that's when Ginny knew his parents really liked her.

"Thank you, I'd like to. My parents rarely come to the city. It's nice to be surrounded by family, even if it's a just borrowed one for a bit," she said, smiling at Lily.

"You grew up in Devon, dear?" asked Lily, as James went to order more drinks.

"Yes, a little village called Ottery St Catchpole. Mum gets up early every weekend to bake pies to take to the big Devon markets," said Ginny.

A funny look came over Lily's face. "Does she make treacle tarts too?"

"Yes, they're one of her most popular ones," nodded Ginny.

"Why, I drove down to Devon last weekend to buy one for Harry," exclaimed Lily. "Molly Weasley was recommended to me."

Ginny giggled. "That's my mum," she said, beaming.

"That was the best treacle tart I've had since my grandmother used to make them," sighed Harry, patting his stomach.

"Quick, marry her, Harry, and you'll have treacle tart for the rest of your life," joked Sirius, making both Harry and Ginny blush.

"It's a small world, said Ginny, looking at Harry, thinking of how they had met.

A very small world indeed.

Ginny stayed with the Potters and Sirius till six, when the trio had to head back to Godric's Hollow. Again she offered to give them alone time, but they wouldn't hear of it, so she watched in amusement as Harry was hugged goodbye by them all, each whispering something in his ear that made him blush each time.

They waved till the car was out of sight. "So, big reveal and you met the family," said Harry, suddenly nervous.

"It all went rather well, don't you think?" she asked.

He glanced at his watch. "So, it was about this time that I was supposed to meet Ginny," he teased.

"Stop it,"she chided, laughing. "I guess I deserve it. Still, I should probably go."

"Already?" he asked.

She nodded. "Unless...did you want to come back to mine? Luna is stopping by to say goodbye, she's off to China. Seems only fair you get to meet someone close to me after today," she reasoned.

He hesitated, and she quickly assured him, "You don't have to if you don't want, it's fine. Luna's bringing a pizza, and then I plan to watch a movie."

"Sounds great," he replied, "and if it's okay with you, I'd really like to come to the match tomorrow, meet all these kids you've been telling me about. And I have _got _to meet Luna."

She beamed, then frowned. "So why the hesitation?" she dared to ask.

"This," – he gestured between the two of them – "is all going so unbelievably well, I don't want to bollocks it up."

"It is going well, isn't it?" asked Ginny, almost desperately. She wanted it to go well. She really liked his family, and the easy going, fun atmosphere they envoked. She felt totally comfortable with them.

"My family loved you," he told her truthfully, "and..."

"And?"

"I've been dying to kiss you all afternoon," he blurted, his face completely red. "if only you knew how bloody sexy you look when you drink a lager, then lick your lips."

Ginny laughed, but stepped boldly up to him and stood on her tiptoes to press beer flavoured lips to his.

She would have stepped back, but Harry held her to him, deepening the kiss. "Can we do this more of this instead of watching a movie tonight?" he asked, when they had broken apart to breathe.

"Definitely," said Ginny, pulling his head back to continue the kissing.

Harry lay in bed that night, aware he had a smile on his face that probably made him look like a crazy person. The night together had been great. Luna was fun, they'd gotten along great, the vegorama pizza she'd brought was disgusting – Ginny had ordered a loaded meat-lovers for the two of them – and the kissing later was out of this world.

And tomorrow he got to do it all again. He was meeting Ginny at the cafe at nine thirty, before they headed to her little kids football match. He was sure Seamus would like to know how well things went for them too!

The next month had been crazy busy. The Zabini's had loved his work and sent another client his way, the Nott's. He was busier than ever, but time with Ginny was even more precious. She made him laugh, she made him forget any troubles he had, and she was so damn kissable. They had recently taken their relationship to the next level, and WOW!

His phone beeped; an incoming message. He leaned over to his bedside table, where his phone was charging.

It was from Ginny. He put his glasses on to read.

**Hey. Just wanted to say again, I had a great day with you**

He quickly replied** Me too**

Remus and Tonks had visited the city with Teddy, and Ginny had joined them taking Teddy to the zoo. She was great with kids, and Teddy adored her. She and Remus had discussed teaching, and Tonks had taken to her too.

It was all going so well, Harry was worried something would happen to make it go pear shaped. Her next text didn't help.

**Harry I've been thinking...**

He frowned, and that bubble of worry expanded.

**I know what you don't want in a relationship, from your time with your ex, so I'm here to assure you that:-**

Three bubble dots appeared, indicating she was typing. He tried to recall what he'd said to her about his time with Cho.

**Don't need to be exclusive if you don't want. Prob way too early**

Was it though? He realised they'd been talking and texting the better part of two months. He certainly didn't want her dating anyone else, and he definitely wasn't looking.

**You're at a good point in your career, that will come first, I get it.**

He wanted to share his accomplishments with her. She seemed really proud of his portfolio of houses he'd already designed for fun and how great things were going at work for him.

**No keys need to be exchanged**

His flat was closer to both her school and the cafe than hers. It was practical, that's all, which is why he already had one cut for her. That was him, Mr Practical.

**Harry? R u there?**

He realised while she had been making all these points, he hadn't responded to her. Bugger it, he was going to go for broke; he wanted her to know how he felt.

So he typed. **July 31**

**Your birthday, my brother's wedding?**

**Need a date? **

**But it's your birthday?**

**Rather spend it with my girlfriend**

**Would love you to be my date. Told you you'd have a new girlfriend by then, didn't I? ;)**

He scrolled way, way back to some of their very first correspondence. Sure enough, she had said it, when he explained how Cho had reacted to the break up. He knew what to respond with.

**Yes, dear**

**LOL**

**Night Gin, sweet dreams**

**Night Harry, see you for coffee in the morning?**

**Of course, I'll save our booth**

**You know we'll have to name our kid after Seamus, don't you! **

The Irishman took great joy every time he saw them, to mention his part in their little love story.

**Nothing wrong with Finnegan **texted Harry

**Finn is a pretty cool name **she agreed

**So, to clarify, we don't need to be exclusive, nor do we need to exchange keys, but we've just named our first kid **

**First? How many you want, Potter?**

**I'm not crazy, as many as you'll give me**

**That's better. Night Harry**

**Night Ginny**

Ginny packed her bag so it was all ready for the morning. She lay out her clothes too, funny, she had become more organised lately, it saved time in the morning, giving her precious more time to spend with Harry before they each headed to work.

She was about to go for a shower, then bed, when she heard her message alert go off. She went to check it, smiling to see it was Harry, again.

**Hey. So, to clarify, those were things I didn't want in a relationship**

**Right**

**A relationship...with Cho**

**Oh**

**Turns out I do want those things in a relationship with you**

**Go figure** Her heart was doing cartwheels

**If you'll have me**

**I've already had you ;) but yeah, for little Finn's sake, yeah, lets do it**.

**So, exclusive and exchanging keys? Just to clarify, you know!**

**Harry, I'm beginning to hate that word**

**LOL**

She wanted so badly to see him, to kiss him.

**Harry, is it too late for me to come and sleep over?**

**Tonight? Now? Don't want you walking over in the dark**

**Okay **He was right, it probably wasn't safe

**I'll meet you at yours in fifteen minutes**

Ginny smiled, sending a silent blessing to James and Lily Potter for raising such a good man.

**Harry – one more thing.**

**Yeah?**

**No more wrong numbers, okay?!**

**Don't worry, you're number 1 on my favourites list. Don't tell Mum, Dad or Sirius tho**

**LOL I won't. C U soon**

**I'm out the door already, be at yours in 10**

**I'll be ready and waiting **

She bustled around, quickly throwing everything she would need for the next work day into a bag. Sure enough, nine minutes later, when he knocked on her door, she was ready to go.

"Hey," she said.

He stepped closer and kissed her, sliding his arms around her waist to bring her flush against his body.

"Ready to go?" he asked, when he released her.

She nodded and, hand in hand, they left her flat and headed out.

Home.

*** End ***


End file.
